The Little Things
by WRITER41319
Summary: When Beckett starts to notice little things Castle does for her, and little things Josh doesn't, will she finally begin to believe that Castle has feelings for her and vice versa? Some continuous stories, some one shots. Fluffy, comedic, and sweet.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is my first venture into writing fluff and romance, please bear with me. Its going to be series of one shots or mini-stories but all kind of in an order. Like its a progression of different moments and stories, with no more than a couple days separating them. Please please please review, its really the best thing in the world :). You can leave a note that says "this sucks" and I'll still be happy. Yeah, I'm that low :D. Ok on with it! DISCLAIMER: I will never own Castle, which is weird, because I too have a vast arsenal of rapier wit.

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Her phone began to ring at 4:00 AM. Katherine Beckett rolled over to pick it up, brain registering only the need to _shut it up_. Her mind was still thick with sleep when she picked up the phone and answered it. It was the station. With a case. At 4 AM. _Of course _she grumbled to herself. But, as she did every morning, she picked herself up, and began to construct the meticulously put-together Detective Beckett.

That was when she realized the other side of the bed was cold. _Strange, I thought Josh didn't have surgery until 8_. Shrugging it off she ventured out into the kitchen to fix breakfast. Her body was already desperately in need for caffeine.

"Hey Kate!"

"Josh! What are you doing up so early? Didn't produce the dead body I'm about to go to I hope." Beckett smiled, leave it to her to find someone who had even crazier hours than she did.

"Last minute surgery call, some kind of emergency with the original surgeon." Josh shrugged.

"Anyway, I better run, the man's heart wont wait. Bye! Oh and there's juice in the fridge, I went out to the store and got some. That's what you like before cases right?"

"Um yeah Josh that's… great. Thank you. See you tonight?"

"Hopefully, I have a pretty full schedule. Maybe by 9?" Josh smiled apologetically, gave Kate a quick peck on the cheek and was gone.

Kate sighed. _Juice? _This had happened three mornings in a row now. She shouldn't blame Josh, he didn't drink coffee, it made him to jumpy while performing surgery. She'd just make it for herself as usual. That's what she did before he came along anyway, and he was a more than considerate boyfriend. She was being ridiculous and needy. Kate shook her head to shake of the strange unfulfilled feeling she felt in the pit of her stomach and quickly went over to make her touted coffee. She opened the cabinet, scanned the contents, and, to her horror, _there was no coffee. _Her body protested at the preposterous idea. The crime scene was in the middle of Central Park, so she didn't have time to get coffee on the way. Kate franticly began to search the adjoining cabinets, surely there was coffee in her apartment somewhere!

Letting out a sigh of frustration, she slid to the floor. _Relax, its just coffee. _Kate couldn't fathom what had made her react so violently to such a trivial thing. Giving up, she grabbed her coat and stormed out the door, caffeine deprived and _extremely _grumpy.

While driving to the crime scene she debated calling Castle, her reliable coffee source, and if she admitted it, friend. She decided against it. It was before 5 AM, and she knew he had some important publicity stuff later that day. She wouldn't do that to him. She pulled up to the edge of the curb and got out. It was still dark out as she walked along the path towards the crime scene.

Suddenly she heard shouting, and she whipped around to see a figure sprinting towards her. She started to reach for her gun, ready for the take down, when the figure got close enough for her to make out his voice. Beckett worked extremely hard to contain her smile. It was Castle. Of course he would be here, at this hour, at a crime scene. The man's passion for crime solving knew no end. Beckett quickly pushed away the stray thought of_ passion for her_.

"Beckett! Beckett! Wait up." Castle shouted, still running towards her and waving his arms like a maniac, not knowing if she recognized him.

"Castle. I get it. Thanks for acting like a demonic clown. I almost took out my gun, and the fact that I haven't had my coffee is not helping." Beckett's mind growled irritably at the thought.

"Beckett, have you ever known me to show up to a crime scene _without _coffee? I make no exceptions"

With true Castle flair, he bowed and with several extraneous "m'ladys" he handed her a grande skim latte with two pumps sugar free vanilla.

"Castle, I doubt very much that I will ever be 'your lady', but thanks for the coffee. God knows I needed it this morning."

Beckett took several large gulps from the hot beverage, nearly burning her throat in the process.

"How did you know we had a case anyway?"

"Esposito called. Said it was freaky. Need I say more?"

"I suppose not, Castle. You're too predictable…"

As they walked towards the crime scene in companionable silence, Beckett couldn't help the small smile that flickered across her lips as she thought of the loyalty of Castle. It was miniscule things like this that upgraded him from annoying shadow to partner. It was things like coffee at 5 AM that made her heart move just a little towards Castle, and just a little bit away from Josh.

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	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hi guys. *cowers in the corner* so... . i can tell you each and every one of my excuses (which actually are pretty good by my standards, they include computer failure, internet failure, and SO. MUCH. WORK. bleh. the only kind of work i want to do is battling with a tricky fanfic chapter but alas, my little life was like nooooonooooooNOOOOO! okay so basically i'm back, and i promise to truly be back. i kind of rediscovered this thing called time allocation so thats how i got this churned out...i will update. like a lot. i promise one update a week for sure, but many bonus updates almost every week. to all the oldcomers, i appreciate all the reviews, i kind of do a really intense happy dance every time i get one.. this fandom is the best :) and to the newcomers, welcome! ok so again this story is like a collection of little one shot story things, and they never are more than a couple days apart in kate's life. its kind of become kate's inner musings, but the next chapter might be partly from castle's point of view. so this particular story/oneshot/thingy is a 2 parter, this being the first part (wow, Alice, that's obvious). if any of you are nice enough to forgive me, then you are truly the best people in the world. thanks :) ok, im done now. ill update tomorrow. ~Alice**

**DISCLAIMER: No, I don't own Castle, because I have no self restraint and they would be on their around the world honeymoon right about now.**

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Kate Beckett was sure that the entire tree population of New York had made its way onto her desk in paperwork form in the last hour. She sat, stunned, and took a moment to observe the obscene stacks covering every inch of the Maplewood that made up her desk. Peering at the nearest pile (no, _tower_), she gingerly reached out and removed the first folder.

Sighing, she pulled her chair closer to her desk, grabbed a pen, and prepared to face the onslaught of technical wording and procedural mazes. Taking a gulp of her scalding hot coffee, she opened the file. She quickly scanned the contents, and immediately recognized this as left over minor assault charges against a first time offender they had caught last week while scavenging Hell's Kitchen for an elusive ex-boyfriend. The paperwork for that case had been endless, with assaults, drug charges, misdirection charges, and just plain idiocy charges flying with a vengeance. Seemingly everyone they had talked to had been guilty of something, and being the good cop that she was, she begrudgingly reported every one. Only now was she feeling the true wrath of her law-abiding ways.

Quickly making her way through the folder, she triumphantly slammed it down into her newfound "finished" pile next to her feet.

With fresh invincibility, she snatched the next folder in the pile-tower-destructor-thingy, ready to tackle the public intoxication charges brought against the ex-boyfriend's uncle's 2nd cousin twice removed.

But when Detective Katherine Beckett opened the file, public intoxication charges were not what she found. Sitting in front of her were the post incident reports for a high profile shootout that had taken the place at the precinct earlier that week involving a takedown of a major coordinator of the Chinatown Black Market.

_What was paperwork from this case doing in her "menial charges" tower?_

Suddenly it hit her. It was all mixed up. Everything was was no rhyme or reason. _Holy shift holy shift holy shift. _

She frantically turned to another stack and looked at the labels protruding from each folder. Sure enough, trivial open-and-shut cases mingled with an assortment of cold cases, high profilers, and the weekly gang murders.

Fighting the urge to scream, she slowly, carefully, stepped out of her chair and around her desk. She was met with two very scared looking homicide detectives slumped as far down in their seats as was humanly possible.

Javier Esposito was the first to decide that he had lived a long and fruitful life, and that he might as well face his demise sooner rather that later.

"Yo! Beckett! What's...up?"

His voice got smaller and smaller until the last syllable he uttered was little more than a whisper. Beckett slowly advanced towards him and Ryan, her steps too calculated and precise for his comfort. When she reached their desks, she simply stood there, glaring at them. After nearly five minutes of no blinking, she carefully opened her mouth, and with nonchalance so extreme it could kill, she said:

"Would either of you fine _detectives _care to explain why all of my files and reports are..." She closed her eyes, put a small and murderous smile on her face "Would you please explain why I suddenly have the privilege of having a medley of cases in each of the wonderful stacks you see in the vicinity of MY DESK?"

By the end of the sentence she had put her fists on Ryan's desk and was nose to nose with him. He cowered away, mumbling something that sounded like "unicorns had back glogs"

"I'm sorry, what did you say?"

Ryan nervously cleared his throat. "I said, uniforms were backlogged, the... they.. when they unclogged themselves they generated the paperwork in a sort of.. randomorder?"

And with that, he was gone, the coffee machine having apparently blown up.

Beckett rounded on Eposito, catching his arm before he could scurry towards the "national disaster."

"Esposito, do you _really _mean to tell me that you let uniforms bring in piles of paperwork in what you _knew_ was a random order all morning while I was gone? It didn't cross your mind once that you could have said something to them about, I don't know, _organizing_ it?"

"Look, Beckett, they've been under a LOT of stress lately, with all the high profile cases closed lately, the increased hours, Ryan and I thought we'd give them a well deserved break..."

"Uh huh, yeah, sure. Real nice poker face, you know how I know that's not true?"

Esposito frantically looked around him, what could have tipped her off?

"The fact that on your desk are three color coded stacks, in perfect order. So you either had enough luck to win the lottery with the _randomly _generated paperwork, or you spoke to uniforms about organizing it... If I asked around, which one do you think would be the popular answer?"

Gulping, Esposito opened his mouth and closed it several times. A few strange noises came out, but then to his immense relief the telltale "They've got nothin' on youuu babyyyy" rang from his pocket.

"Its Lanie I better go its probably something really important see you later Beckett " He called over his shoulder in one breath as he rushed towards the elevator.

"I will have you know that I AM YOUR BOSS, YOU CAN'T ESCAPE ME! OH AND WHAT A GREAT RINGTONE." Beckett shouted after him.

With no one else to intimidate, she stomped her way back to her desk.

One tedious hour later, she had made an unbelievably small dent in the tower. Having to take time to recall the specific aspects of so many different cases in random order made everything take ten times longer. Needing to clear her brain, she went to eat a quick sandwich and have a cappuccino at the local cafe. Little did she know that when she was one block away from the precinct, a lone organizational elf set to work.

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**Like it? Hate it? Review it! Shallow Alice! YAY!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: So... hey guys. This chapter is a littlleeeee later than i intended, but my stupid internet module thingy broke so i kinda have a (semi) good excuse. that and not letting me upload when i actually had the ability to upload. grrr. OK so this is the 2nd part of my 2 parter, WHICH IS NOW OFFICIALLY A 3 PARTER. the 3rd and final part will be out probably tomorrow because I have a 3 hour bus ride and nothing to do and i've already finished half :). i feel so ahead of the game! i'm really not... *sigh* anyway all my readers are INSANELY awesome, seriously (seriously?) seriously! i'm only 7 alerts/faves away from having 100. thats insane, considering the amount of broken promises and really laggy updates i've left behind me. anyway, THANKS AGAIN. and you're reviews... oh good god. seriously. they make me hop around and scream and cry happy tears i've really never felt so loved. so thank you. ok... i'm done now :). ENJOY! ~Alice**

**DISCLAIMER: none of the franchises mentioned in this _fanfiction _are mine, cuz i mean, seriously? LOOK at me... well er... you can't see me... but LOOK at my author's note!**

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Richard Castle practically bounced to the precinct that afternoon. The new cover art for _Heat Rises_ had just come out, and Nikki Heat wasn't naked on the cover this time. Well, not... revealingly... naked. Ready to score some brownie points with Beckett, he whistled his way through the entrance and into the elevator. As the old elevator rattled its way up, Castle's mind wandered back to the past 3 years. It had become such a routine. It was a comforting routine, but it still remained novel. Coffee, dead body, precinct... Beckett. At first, it was about primal instinct. Pretty girl, annoy her, flirt with her, maybe something more. It then quickly became about the dead bodies. Intrigue, shootouts, his fantasies of crime scenes turned to life. Then, it was about the partnership. They became a well oiled machine, although she hadn't admitted it until recently. But through his crazy antics and her threats to kill him, they had unsuspectingly built a foundation like no other. So solid; unbreakable. Until it wasn't. Their friendship was so precious, such a treasure, that neither dared shake it for fear it would turn from diamond to dust. Castle let the thoughts drift through his mind; letting the little box in his mind labeled _"Katherine Beckett: Feelings" _tip open and reveal some of its contents to him.

He was jerked from his reverie by the elevator dinging open, and by the shouting at the opposite end of the bullpen. _Maybe she thought Nikki Heat WAS revealingly naked on the cover. Crap. _Quickly falling into a crouch, he dove behind a desk, with the user of said desk giving him a multitude of glares. With his front row seat to the shouting match (well, the one sided shouting match), he watched the events unfold. It quickly became clear that he, for a change, was not the reason for her irritation. Irritation was a little bit of an understatement; he would revise that thought later. Still, he knew better than to go over to Beckett's desk (he would probably float because of his good mood) and stare at her while she was in a bad mood. He didn't mind looking at her for hours, but he had a nagging feeling she would.

He saw Esposito sprint towards the elevator, but when it didn't arrive immediately, Esposito practically flung himself into the "Stair A" door. A short time later, Ryan scurried past him, having seemingly taken the back door from the break room and then looped around towards the elevator. Ryan too couldn't wait for the elevator, and with 10 feet of non-concealing open space, he resorted to lowering himself to the height of a small dog. Castle watched him get to the door to the stairs, nudge it open with his head, and squeeze through it with several looks of panic at Beckett's back.

Castle sighed. It was shaping up to be a decidedly un-brownie point day. Unless... Castle peered once again over the desk, wincing at the piles of folders surrounding Beckett. He knew her work patterns better than anyone; he knew that by taking the time, amount of coffee in her cup, and folders within an arms length of her into consideration he could say she would be needing a break in about one hour.

Getting down on all fours, he followed Ryan's route to the break room, getting stares from all but a very focused Detective Beckett. He stretched out on one of the couches, whipped out his phone, and immersed himself in the wonderful world of technology.

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A mix of Angry Birds, Doodle Jump, and an episode of his favorite show Firefly made the hour fly by, and the next time he peeked over the coffee machine he saw Beckett making her way towards the elevator.

A quick call to the receptionist on the ground floor to confirm that she had in fact left the building and he was in business. Caste knew that he had a maximum of 45 minutes before Kate returned from her late lunch. Setting a stopwatch, he let the speed-reading, detail oriented, and fast memorizing part of his brain consume him. Years of reading in corners of book stores and libraries, of infusing small details to create atmosphere in his books, and of memorizing cheats for tests in high school because he had written a novel instead of a paper had produced this strangely productive part of Richard Castle. He went out of his way to make sure this part of him stayed relatively secret. He shuddered at the thought of the press getting wind of it. He could see the headline on page 6 now: _Richard Castle's entire public personality a façade? _

He ran over to Esposito's desk and grabbed the colored tabs; color-coding was essential. He quickly divided the first stack into five different categories: cold cases, gang murders, shootouts involving cops, general ex-boyfriend murders ex-girlfriend, and high profile cases. As soon as he put all folders into one of these piles (or formed additional piles if needed), he would consolidate paperwork for individual cases so that it was grouped all together and not scattered through each stack. If he was lucky enough to do all this in under 45 minutes, he would put the cases in chronological order so she would be able to work through a straight timeline of cases.

Richard Castle became an organizational whirlwind. His coat was lying on the floor ten feet from where he was, and his hair was unusually rumpled. People stopped and stared, watching as the man threw folders into piles at a furious pace. He would grab a folder on the desk, open it for less than a second, and then sprint around the desk to throw it in one of the five piles on the ground in front of it. Every five minutes he would take ten seconds to straighten a pile to prevent it from creating a paperwork domino crash. Slowly, or rather quickly, there began to be fewer folders on the desk than there were on the floor. When the latest file was thrown in one of the piles and Castle rushed back around the desk to grab the next one, his hand grasped air. Doing a double take, he observed the empty desk. He seemed as shocked as anyone else at the amount of paper he had just relocated. Glancing at the stopwatch (that had only taken 20 minutes?) he sprang back into action, this time taking one of his five mega piles and creating dozens of smaller stacks from it. Each small stack was paperwork from a certain case. He began to simply create these little small stacks in a spiral that surrounded the desk. Looking as crazy as some of the people down in holding, he hopped around with folders, creating an ever-expanding coil of stacks.

24 minutes later there were five color-coded chronological towers sitting on Kate Beckett's desk and a raised desk chair to let her know exactly who had been there.

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**Like it? Review it! You don't have to be a member or anything to review. so you can say nasty stuff and no one will know it was you! yay! OH and a special shout out to Migalouch, who reviewed my last chapter and has written one of THE most amazing castle action fanfics. Its called "A Black Past" and go check it out NOW! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: So this one is pretty short, but at least its when i promised it! And it potentially concludes this 3 part mini story. Not the actual story. Just the little event :). Anyway go ahead and read but can i just say I GOT SO MANY REVIEWS RIGHT AWAY LAST NIGHT AND EACH AND EVERY PERSON THAT REVIEWED THANK YOU SO MUCH. YOU ALL ARE THE MOST BEAUTIFUL HUMAN BEINGS EVER. ok please read the end authors note as well because its kind of important! ~Alice**

**DISCLAIMER: yeah, yeah, i don't own the flippin thing.**

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Kate Beckett sat in one of the armchairs in the little eccentric café, sipping her cappuccino. She let the foamy and rich flavor wash over her. Taking perhaps more time than absolutely necessary for each gulp of the warm liquid, she let herself forget about the precinct and the attack of paperwork waiting for her when she returned. She spent several more leisurely minutes staring out the window, watching passersby without her usual mindset of which-one-is-the-murderer. Finally shaking herself from this mirage of tranquility she made her way back to the precinct.

She could feel some of the tension crawl back into her shoulders as soon as the elevator lurched to a halt and revealed the bullpen. With a distinct air of determination she made her way to her desk. Paperwork would not break Detective Beckett. Arriving at her desk, it took her five seconds to finally process the sight.

"The folders...they were...now...they...coded?" She managed to choke out. Glancing wildly around she had to fight with all her might to not do a jig in front of the whole precinct. Spinning around, she examined the stacks with glee, and confirmed that the towers were, in fact, color coded by genre. And, upon further inspection, she lost all sense of dignity, shouting:

"AND CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER TOO? THEY'RE ANGELS!"

Anti-jig thoughts forgotten, she pranced her way to the break room, expecting Ryan and Esposito to be there wearing identical grins.

Taken aback when she found the break room to be empty, she caught a uniform by the arm and with a smile she saved for special occasions said:

"Tell Ryan and Esposito I say thank you. And that I forgive them."

The uniform, Mr. Speralza, gave her a strange and unreadable look, nodded, and scurried away. Frowning at his reaction and the strange looks she was getting from almost everyone around her, she returned to her desk and sat down.

Nothing. Her stilettos hit nothing. Except ait. There was only one person that Kate Beckett knew that would dare to sit in her chair _and_ leave it this high off the ground.

Castle.

Any hint of self control was long gone and she felt the words slip out.

"I LOVE that man!"

Quickly clapping her hand to her mouth, she looked around with wide eyes, to find almost every pair of eyes in the bullpen on her. Silence. Smirks. Knowing glances. Hints of 20 dollar bills flashing behind people's backs.

Narrowing her eyes, she mentall punched herself and quickly tried to cover up the slip.

"I meant, I love that he did that for me! It was so nice of him! He's such a good friend."

She tried with a laugh and her best snile.

She could see every pair of eyes roll amost in unison. Finally, Detective Beckett replaced the fumbling Kate.

"DON'T YOU ALL HAVE YOUR OWN WORK TO DO? OR AM I THE ONLY ONE THAT HAS PAPERWORK? HM?"

Stillness. Then in a sudden flurry of activity everyone turned on their heel and made their way towards a wall, and then realizing they were headed for concrete quickly turned around again and sat down at their desks. Making sure to send intimidating glares in every direction, she returned her attention to the towers, smiling at Castle's masterful work. She never would have pegged him for someone who could make anything orderly. He was the antonym of order personified. Or maybe not. As many layers as her onion contained, maybe his had a whole lot more than she thought.

A smile graced her lips as she thought of Castle. The man had no limits, and maybe that wasn't a bad thing. What he had done today was so incredibly sweet. He had done amazing things before, like save her life and start a foundation in her mother's name. But still, never had something so ordinary as organizing paperwork been so un-ordinary. Almost two and a half years ago he had first told her that she was extraordinary. Maybe it was time she returned the favor.

She'd just made a complete fool of herself in front of nearly the entire precinct, but she didn't mind. No, she didn't mind at all.

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**A/N2: OK so I could definitely end it here, but if you would like me to add one last chapter of this event that shows Castle and Beckett interacting, please leave a review a tell me! I thought some people might be a little annoyed that they never crossed paths. But even if you are all right with it ending here, leave a review anyway :D. iF you rather i go on, i'll go to the next event in this little castle story. Go back to my first 2 authors notes to revisit exactly how the layout of this story will be :) Thanks again!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: UUUuuuurggg... hi guys. I'm screwed aren't I? I am? yeah. thought so... All i can say is the last month has been one of the busiest of my life, with several recordings, concerts, and lessons happening. Oh wait, you don't know. right, well I'm a violinist. *scratch that* TRYING to be a violinist :). i play classical music as well as some pop, but im trying to be a professional classical musician. i can see you all rolling your eyes right about now... classical music is sooo boring. for everyone except classical musicians :D. i sit here realizing you don't care, you just want me to flippin update! which i will, because i'm in my little cabin/house summer practice get away place where all i will do is write and practice. BAAZINGA! so, done with that. now, this story may change a little, but it basically ignores the finale, or it can be after the next season premiere. its just kinda cruzin' in castleland. anyway, josh is still with beckett, so it works. it might change from a lot of mini stories next to each other to more of a one story continuous thing. we'll see. also, can i just say, i got so. many. reviews. for the last chapter. did several little flips but i couldn't reaaly do them because im not flexible. so i did them in my mind. i noticed that y'all lurkers come out of the wordwork when i threaten to end a mini story :D. but due to the overwhelming amount of "continue!"'s here is part 1 of beckett and castle interacting. enjoy! you guys are the best readers ever. thats all. *rant screeches to a halt* ~Alice**

**Disclaimer: Yeah... no, nope, nopedidoo.  
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A time-lapse camera would have been appropriate to show the amount of work Katherine Beckett was doing. Each slide would show another folder finished, another lying open in front of her, and that the stack was about a quarter of an inch shorter. She wished someone _was _taking pictures of her every minute, at least to assure her that she was making progress. What was the saying? Time flies by when you're having fun. Kate thought it was fair to say she wasn't. Therefore, it must be fair to say time wasn't flying. It wasn't even running. Or jogging. Or walking. It was crawling.

But if she was being painfully honest with herself, which the crawling time had prompted her to be, the reason that a second felt like a minute and a minute felt like an hour wasn't the amount of work that was in front of her. That had been taken care of by Castle and his miracles. It was because the man behind the miracle wasn't sitting in his usual rust-colored chair, cracking jokes and distracting her, making her smile and laugh, even making her annoyed. She had half-hoped he'd pop out of a storage closet once she had fully processed the state of her paperwork. But the minutes wore by and Castle was nowhere to be seen.

She sighed and returned to her paperwork, which was getting done at a remarkable pace, she finally concluded. Just not the easiest pace for the bored and tired human eye to register. She breezed through reports of cases, pausing only as she tackled the first in a series of the same case to recall the specific details. She owed Castle, and she owed him big time. Folders that were taking 10 minutes would have taken 20, and she would have required five times more coffee breaks.

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At 7 she decided to call it an early night; her brain was fried. She made her way through the breezy Manhattan streets and anticipated the warmth of a good glass of wine and reading something that wasn't a police report. Arriving at the 34th street subway station, she waited on the platform and busied herself with the manuscript of Heat Rises. The cover art had been released recently on and she was happy to say that Nikki Heat wasn't obscenely naked on the cover this time. She was just... naked. The train arrived and in the post-rush hour serenity she found a seat with ease.

She had made sure to put an old cover of Pride and Prejudice over the manuscript so as not to attract unwanted attention. Inwardly applauding herself for her foresight, she buried herself into the tales of Nikki Heat, the tension that kept her vigilant slowly seeping away, leaving her oblivious to everything but Heat, Rook, and the fictitious criminals they chased through the underbelly of New York City.

Castle's writing was one of the only things in the world that could make her lose her constant alertness; his prose and fluid storytelling made her lose herself, forget her troubles, and forget the crimes of the wicked she witnessed daily. The train's stop at 23rd street went completely unnoticed to her, the lurch of the train felt only by others. As the train slowed to a stop at 14th street, her station, she remained immersed her reading, reading page after page with a raw hunger for the safety of his words. The stations continued to flash by: first West 4th Street, then Spring Street, but when the train finally screeched to a halt at Canal Street, an old lady, surprised by the sudden backwards motion, toppled into Kate's lap.

Starting, she quickly helped the elderly woman to her feet, and upon seeing the title of the station just outside the plexi-glass window of the subway car she sprang into action, squeezing through the subway doors just as they shut. She hadn't missed her stop in over five years. Shaking her head in wonder at the effect Castle and his writing seem to have on her, she quickly dashed up the stairs to cross to the uptown side of the station.

The minutes ticked by, but no uptown train came. Several downtown and express trains had flown by, annoying her more and more each time it happened. Her patience wearing thin, she decided to walk up to street level and hail a cab. Standing on the chilly street corner, she finally took note of exactly where she was. Castle's apartment was four blocks away. No… she wouldn't. Would she?

Making a spur-of-the-moment decision she would normally scoff at, she hurried eastward, tilting her head towards the ground to protect her eyes against the harsh wind. The intersection between Broome and Crosby was relatively empty, the cobblestone street devoid of tourists and cars. The moon shone hazily overhead as she pressed his apartment buzzer with one gloved finger. The buzzer was answered within seconds as she heard his voice speak distortedly through the intercom:

"Paula, I told you, the cover art is _tasteful_, and there's no going back now, so you'll just have to—"

"It's Beckett." She blurted out, feeling out of place.

"Oh." The surprise in his voice was evident. "Come on up."

The door clicked open, and a gust of warm air blew her hair back as she stepped into the spacious lobby.

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**A/N2: yeah its short, and they don't actually interact *heehee* but i have an AWESOME next couple of chapters planned. next chapter will probably be up later today. also, i had a field day with the research for this one, if anyone wants to know about how i did the subway stops/locations of various apartments just PM me. i finally put some of my new yorker-ness to use which you'll see more of in the next chapter. OH and last thing, yes, im aware its summer, yes im still pretending its winter in my story. something about winter makes it seem much more romantic to me. hrm.**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: YEAH YEAH yeah yeah yeah... ya... :( i didn't upload again. I'm really sorry for what its worth. not much, i know. im not going to make any more promises. i just hope you continue to enjoy these stories, because everyone that has reviewed and alerted have made me so incredibly grateful and happy. im coming up to 200 alerts/faves which is amazing especially considering how much i let you guys down. anyway, thanks for being the best readers ever. a couple notes: when i said i find winter to be more romantic i was just saying that as an opinion. someone said "have you ever heard of summer love?" of COURSE i have :D but for me, in new york city, winter is much more romantic. walking the back streets while winds fly off the rivers wrapped up in a wool coat and a nice scarf next to someone you love (*cough* castle and beckett *cough*) is just the best. to me. im not a big summer person any way. but summer in nyc really sucks. XD also, i got some complaints about my grammar and general sloppy story telling (*sadface*) i write on the fly whenever i can, because i literally have no time. so when i do, i try my best. i just dont want to let you peeps down! tell me what you think. :) ~Alice**

DISCLAIMER: dude. i don't. yeah, you know. exactly. nuhhh uh. no me castle.

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Standing in the elevator watching the light slowly climb higher and higher Kate suddenly froze. Why was she here? What did she have to say? She had to say thank you, that was for sure, but an entire trip to his apartment? She knew this was foolish.

Why had she done it then? She had let her feet take her there. She had let herself be pulled towards him like a magnet. Sighing in frustration at her lack of clear thinking this evening, she was about to text him some lame excuse and press the lobby button when the elevator opened and she was faced with Castle's door. The temptation was too much, and she stepped out of the elevator and rang the doorbell, heart racing. Why? Why was it racing? She'd been to Castle's countless times. Maybe it was the aimlessness of her visit. Maybe it was her need to see him without a clear reason. There was certainly no going back now… She shuffled her feet, cleared her face, and within a matter of seconds the door was opened by the man who had been filling up her thoughts all day.

All her worries were forgotten when his face lit up upon seeing her, crooked smile and sparkling blue eyes overruling her nerves.

"Beckett! To what do I owe the unexpected pleasure?" Castle ushered her in and helped her remove her jacket.

"I was just… in the neighborhood. I guess."

Castle raised his eyebrows. "You guess? Katherine Beckett doesn't guess." Humor twinkled in his cobalt eyes.

Giving in, her resolve in tatters, she sighed and a smile crept onto her face as she said "Well, if I'm being completely honest, I _might_ have forgotten to stop reading _Heat Rises_ on the train, and then…I ended up here."

A grin stretched across his face, "Couldn't resist the urge to see me, Detective?"

"Yeah, sugar rush and all," she retorted with an eye roll.

Kate looked at her feet, and Castle's brow furrowed. Seldom had he seen her so...shy. She was wearing her usual spike heals, but in that moment he couldn't help but notice how small she looked. He just wanted to hold her, to make her laugh and smile. Finally she looked up at him.

"I just… I really wanted to let you know how much your little organizational stunt meant to me. I know its just paperwork… But really, something about it…" Kate was at a rare loss for words, struggling in her attempt to convey her gratitude.

Castle smiled, "Nah… Its no big deal, just knew you'd like it that way."

"Rick." A tingling sensation shot through his body at the rare use of his first name, the name sounding foreign coming off her tongue.

"Do you know how difficult my day would've been if it wasn't for you?"

Rick winced in a comically exaggerated way, making a smile blossom on her face.

"The paperwork problem was the last thing I needed today. I know I shouldn't complain-"

Castle cut her off. "Kate, you have the hardest job of anyone I know, and you complain so astonishingly little. We're all entitled to some complaining from time to time."

A grin flickered across her face. "You certainly make use of that entitlement."

A mock gasp fell from Castle's lips, and she quickly added "from time to time, of course."

"Of course." Castle nodded his head vigorously.

They were silent for a second before Kate continued.

"Thank you, Castle. My life would've been a living hell today if it wasn't for you." She paused and studied the air behind Castle's head.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Shoot." Rick said with devilish grin.

"How on earth did you manage to maintain your concentration for so long? I mean, I don't even know if I could organize that fast. I can't believe my nine year old…grew up."

What had started out as a humorous jab turned into something loaded with subtext, and a current of feelings they had desperately shoved away engulfed them.

"I have to keep you guessing, Detective. Can't let you know all my secrets."

Kate didn't miss the verbal distance he put between them, referring to her by her job title rather than her name. She felt foolish analyzing his sentences like that. Where had her strength gone? Why did Richard Castle, celebrity author and self-described superficial person bring all her walls crashing down? "You were a mystery I was never gonna solve." His words echoed in her head, and she couldn't help but think that he too would always remain the slightest bit foreign. Would there always be that indescribable air of mystique surrounding him?

Castle watched her get lost in thought, wishing for the umpteenth time he could just get a little peek into her mind. He saw her very discreetly rearrange her features, as she did whenever she wanted to clear her mind. She'd always thought that he stared at her because he was trying to be flirty, or because he was bored, or because he simply liked studying things. All of those were partially true, but the real reason he could spend forever staring at Kate was that he was utterly in awe of her.

The sound of an ambulance passing by shook them both from their thoughts. They were still standing by the door, but both had unconsciously taken several steps towards each other. Realizing their close proximity at the same time, they hastily retreated.

Castle disrupted the silence first.

"So… do you wanna stay and eat something?"

"No, its okay. I ate some takeout at the precinct a while ago."

Castle narrowed his eyes, suspicious.

"Are you absolutely _sure _you didn't have that takeout six hours ago?"

"Castle, I think _I _would know if I was starving. You seem to think you know my stomach better than I do. I'm _fine._"

Castle held his hands up in the air in defeat.

"Fine, fine! You win! But will you pleeeaaaaase have desert with me?"

He topped off his request with his trademark puppy dog eyes, and Kate found her already dilapidated resolve melting away.

"And there's the nine year old again."

"Will you? Huh, will you? Please?"

Kate rolled her eyes at his begging.

"Okay, Castle. Fine. I will have desert with you. Happy now?"

It seemed to Kate that Castle's entire face lit up. He ran in a small circle, pumped his fist, and did a jump for joy in the space of two seconds.

"Wow, you must be really lonely Castle. I can't imagine what your reaction would've been if I'd agreed to dinner."

A small bit of sanity entered into Castle's eyes again as he replied. "Well, _Detective_, every time Alexis goes to a camp or an exchange program I do have a lot of lonely nights and pent up energy, so naturally when a beautiful woman agrees to dine with me—" Kate rolled her eyes at the exaggeration, but couldn't help the pink that tinged her cheeks at being called beautiful by Castle "—I do get excited."

"_Naturally_." Kate retorted, sarcasm dripping from her voice.

Nothing could dampen Castle's spirits, and he continued as if she'd done a jump for joy with him.

"You don't mind taking a little walk, do you?" As he talked he got Kate's coat and held it as she slipped her arms into it.

"Where are we going?" Kate asked warily as she was pulled out the door and into the elevator.

"You'll love it, I promise."

"_Really_? That's quite a promise."

As the elevator sank towards ground level they both turned their heads towards each other at the same time, making their first real eye contact of the night. Kate was startled by the intensity that shone out of Castle's eyes, so even though Castle's promises usually left her pounding her head against a wall, she decided to trust him. She couldn't deny the blue orbs with glitters of hope that currently seemed to be staring at her soul.

"Let's go," she said, making a conscious effort to look away.

The elevator dinged open and they left the warmth of lobby for the chilly streets of New York City.

Together.

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**A/N2: ok here's the deal. i got 26 reviews on chap. 4 and 8 on chap. 5. it seems i have people that lurk. come outta the word work bros! plleeeeaaase? reviews literally fuel me. so the more reviews the faster i write. not exactly intentionally but more words just stream out of my fingers when i feel like i have more interest :). y'all are the best. i seriously don't deserve you.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: whoa! look at this! alice actually updated fast. something must be wrong with the world! :D ok this chapter is probably the second to last in the paper-organizing story and chapter 9 will be a new event in caskett's lives :). migalouch mentioned i need to reinstate my castle/josh comparisons AND YOU ARE TOTALLY RIGHT. i got caught up in caskett. again :D. ill try to do that much more in the coming chapters. oh and shout out to DeadPigeon who reviewed and has many great stories including "Misdirection" a personal favorite of mine :). thanks! chap 8 should be up pretty soon.**

Disclaimer: eltsac nwo t'nod i. thats "i don't own castle" backwards.**  
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They made their way through the astonishingly tranquil city streets at a lazy pace, enjoying the feeling of being protected by thick layers of fabric. Their breath puffed into the air in front of them, Kate's white cloud sometimes colliding with Rick's. Somewhere along the way Kate's arm had slipped around Rick's and to an outsider they looked like just another couple in love, wandering the streets of the city that never sleeps.

They continued walking for a while, Kate simply following Castle without a second thought, until he slowed to a stop and pointed across the street.

There, nestled between two larger residential buildings, was a small café. Two large plastic ice cream cones were perched on either side of a bright sign that read _Ferrara Bakery & Café._

"_This _is your secret spot Castle? This looks pretty touristy to me."

Castle smiled. "Oh it is, during the summer. People come here and stuff their faces with gelato and think they're getting the "real" Little Italy experience. But—" he continued with a wink "—in the winter it turns magical, and I'm sure you'll appreciate just how great their pastries are."

"Whatever you say Castle, whatever you say." She was still skeptical of all the gimmicks surrounding the entrance.

Somehow their hands had slipped together and Castle pulled her across the street and into the Café.

Kate let out a little gasp when they entered the bakery. A black and white marble tiled floor, a low wood ceiling, and the most amazing display of pastries met her eyes. One of the waiters spotted Castle and smiled. He was dressed in a black and white waiter's uniform and was the proud owner of a perfectly shaped grey mustache.

"It has been a long time Mr. Castle." He spoke with a faint Italian accent, and Kate could tell it was genuine and not added for tourist's benefits. "You do not come alone I see, this is unusual indeed."

Kate suddenly felt self conscious as the alert waiter studied her.

Castle answered the waiter. "Yes Francesco, this is Kate. Kate, Francesco."

"Very nice to meet you, Kate. You should know this is the first time Mr. Castle has ever brought someone other than his notebook here. Quite unusual indeed," he repeated.

Francesco fixed Castle with another curious gaze from startlingly blue eyes, and waved them towards a small booth in a secluded back corner of the café.

"I assume your order has not changed, Mr. Castle?"

"You assume correctly, Francesco. Helpful as always." One last long look was exchanged between Francesco and Castle before Castle led Kate to the booth. Kate was painfully aware of her heels clacking against the marble, as the café was almost completely empty save for an old man with a ferocious black beard comically trying to avoid getting frosting stuck in it.

They sat down at the booth, and a single candle in the middle of the table cast dancing shadows across their faces.

"Your right Castle, this place is magical."

Castle smiled so brightly it made Kate feel weak at the knees even though she was already sitting down.

"Told you so. Having a successful bakery in Little Italy is akin to being a successful baseball player. You have to have something that stands out. Ferrara exploited the summer heat by offering fine gelato to every tourist that passed, and that was what allowed them to become the real Ferrara." Castle looked around, and Kate could tell this place meant a lot more to him than he was letting on.

"So, you've never taken anyone here?"

Kate found it hard to believe considering the amount of girlfriends Castle had accumulated over the years.

"Nope. Never. It was always _my _place. The one place I would go where no one could find me. You saw how the entrance tricks you into thinking its cheap. No one ever looked for me here. Whenever I was really blocked, and I mean really, I come here with a pad of paper and a pencil, and within ten minutes the words would be flowing again. I feel so… safe here."

"You never took Alexis here?"

"Surprisingly, no. I thought I'd bring her here sometime, but I couldn't bring myself to. It sounds selfish, but I wanted one place that only I knew about. A refuge."

Kate was caught off guard by how honest he was being.

"If you wanted only you to know about it, why'd you bring me?"

Castle was about to answer but was interrupted by Francesco placing a single cannoli and a small espresso in front of them. Kate felt her mouth drop open and she quickly closed it. Never had she thought something so simple would look so exquisite. Somewhere in the back of her mind she realized Josh would never, ever, have the time to do something like this. She didn't think he even knew about anything like this.

The cannoli was not overly adorned in chocolate; it had just a small drizzle that swished across the top. The cream looked like it had been made within the last two seconds, perfectly smooth yet not too soft. The shell didn't have the usual glistening moisture that hours of sitting in a display case caused; it was a beautiful golden brown color. She tore her eyes away from the desert to look up at Castle with what must have been saucer eyes.

"Told ya so." He smiled in triumph as she looked back down at the dessert in awe.

Finally getting a hold of herself, she realized they were drinking espresso. At night. Late at night for that matter.

"Castle, isn't it a little late to be drinking an espresso?"

"Is it too late to be drinking a usual run-of-the-mill espresso? Yes. Is it too late to drink Ferrara's home blend espresso paired with their perfect cannoli? Never."

He whispered the last word for dramatic effect and Kate couldn't help the small giggle that escaped her lips.

"Ok Detective, care to do the honors?" Castle gestured to the cannoli.

"I think I have a better idea." Castle saw the mischievous glint he so loved creep into her eyes.

Kate took her thumb and forefinger and carefully picked up the cannoli from the middle. She raised it till it was level with both of their mouths and leaned forward. She raised her eyebrow and Castle quickly leaned forward too.

"Here I was thinking you could only do this with hot dogs."

Kate laughed and leaned forward even farther, her lips centimeters away from her end of the cannoli. Castle followed her, and when she was content with their positioning, she held up 3 fingers.

Three… two… one. She counted down on her hand. When she put her first finger down they both took a bite from their respective ends.

What they didn't count on was the cannoli being so small and their bites being so big.

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**A/N: teeny cliffhanger i hope everyone got it! i tried to be clear! also, ferrara is a real place and they really do have the best cannoli ever. :D OMG. i forgot to beg you guys to review. PLEAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSEEEEE? :D also i got a whopping 19 reviews of the story after my last update so THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! i love knowing what you guys think!  
**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: I'MM BAAAAAAAAAAAACK. its been under 2 weeks so i guess thats an accomplishment. a measly little weasly accomplishment. anyway, i got some reviews that were asking if kate really thinks she's in a relationship with josh because of how saucy and couply she acts around castle. my answer: yes, she feels she is in a devoted relationship with josh. the only reason i let her do stuff like the cannoli is because she does stuff like that on the show. she's daring and flirty with castle, no matter how commited she is to josh. if she wasn't like that on the show, she wouldn't be like that here. SO! this chapter is a little different. its more about Kate's inner turmoil. and there is some josh content (sorry), i really needed to introduce him again. because thats kinda the point of the story. he's like nagging at her mind. so we'll see what she does with that nag ;). i got pretty caught up in caskett because theyre so damn LOVEABLE. ok. stopping. now. PLEASE read A/N2 cuz it has an important question. brooos. :D im so hyper right now, you have nooooo ideaa. (i can't say it with the same amount of appeal as Beckett, unfortunately :/...) ON WITH IT! ~Alice  
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Disclaimer: ahahaahahah that WOULD be the day, wouldn't it. Alice, crazy nutbar, owner of Castle.

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Kate froze, the cannoli in her mouth long forgotten. Richard Castle's lips were about an inch away from—_Oh my god, had his eyes really just flickered down to her lips?_

Kate had no idea why she was freaking out this particular time instead of all the other times they'd found themselves inches away from each other. It was probably the—the… Kate stuttered internally as she looked up into his cobalt eyes and found their expression to be one of sheer joy.

_Why was he joyful? Was this one of those joyful moments? Should _she _be joyful?_

Kate slapped her inner self for being so schoolgirl-like. Seriously, what _was _her problem today? A wave of guilt washed over her as she realized she had been inches away from cheating on Josh. Well, not cheating per se, but she didn't know if she could stop the situation from snowballing if they had—_Kate, you are OUT OF CONTROL. You will not be couply or kissy or anything remotely close to that with Castle because—because…_ Kate found herself searching for a reason in vain before finally finding one-_You are with Josh, and he-he is your boyfriend, and you love him. Sort of. Completely. Maybe. And you work with Castle. It wouldn't work out. It couldn't work out. It would mess everything up. Right? RIGHT! _ Kate screamed at the strange voice in her head that seemed to ship her and Castle and sounded suspiciously like Lanie. This needed to stop. Now.

Castle saw Kate's expression change from one of surprise to one of adorable panic. He couldn't prevent the joy that had crossed his face when he found himself studying every detail of Katherine Beckett's impossibly beautiful face. He'd probably scared her off. Why did he have to be so intense and mushy with Beckett? He wasn't like that with other women.

"_But, uh, Rick?" _A small voice in his head chided him.

"_Kate Beckett isn't another woman, and other women aren't Kate Beckett."_

_Duh_, Rick thought to himself.

They were still frozen in place, both pairs of eyes locked on the other.

With sudden and unnecessary force Kate yanked her head away, visibly slamming her back into the booth. She saw disappointment flicker through Castle's eyes, but she also saw something that made her sigh with relief: understanding.

She promised herself she would show some restraint. She couldn't lose Josh. They had something really special.

"_Not as special as what you and Castle have." _The inner Lanie-shipper-voice-thing sing-songed in her head.

"SHUT UP!"

Kate didn't realize she had said it out loud until she saw Castle's expression.

"Oh…uh… not—not you Castle. I didn't mean—" She faltered around several one-syllable words that were really just sounds until Castle cut her off; grinning.

"Its okay, Detective, I get it. My imaginary friends piss me off sometimes too."

Kate narrowed her eyes and resorted to take a sip of espresso instead of attempting any more words.

Somewhere in her mind she noticed the underlying chocolaty flavor of the espresso that made her want to curl up next to a fire with a good book and go to sleep. With Castle—no, with Josh. She quickly corrected herself, wondering what really _was _in this food. No doubt Castle had Francesco the waiter slip in some love drug. That sounded like something he would do. Chuckling at the thought, she was painfully aware of Castle's eyes boring into hers, unblinking and forever attentive.

Castle wanted to know what had made a small smile flicker across her face. He wanted so badly to share whatever joke she had thought of. He wanted to _know _Kate. Not Detective Beckett, whom he knew intimately as a partner and as a friend, but Kate. Kate the Temptation Lane fan. Kate the former model (yes, he knew about that). Kate the Mets fan. The Kate that curled up and went to sleep, maybe even snuggled with a pillow, not the one that ran hundreds of feet in spike heels and knocked down suspects three times her size. He was sure that even though Detective Beckett may be flashier, Kate would amaze him even more. The little glimpses she allowed him always left him astounded.

Kate broke the silence that had been stretching between them.

"Why do I feel like we've been lost in our separate thoughts for ninety percent of this—" She almost said date, but this was not a date. At all. _I wish it was._ _Get a grip. You're drunk. Or something. Kate, you're drunk with… love? What? No. That's stupid. You're stupid tonight. Maybe I can control my thoughts just a little bit? Maybe? For two seconds? Ugh. _This exchange lasted less than a second in her head before she cleared it and continued. "—outing."

Castle didn't miss the slight pause and strained word usage, but he dismissed the thousands of word possibilities that flooded his mind to replace "outing."

"I think you feel that way because we have been." Castle responded distractedly, still trying to ward off the inner barrage of words.

"Well, we should talk then."

"Words. My specialty." Castle said with a comically obscene wink.

"So, what do you want to… talk about?"

"Carnivorous desk lamps, the conspiracy between the NYPD computers, or… you." Castle ran through the ridiculous choices as if he were talking about the weather until he arrived at the last subject with a grin so dazzling Kate thought she could lose herself in it forever.

"Gee Castle, I didn't realize we'd be talking about enriching things today." The sarcasm dripped from her voice.

"Got to keep you on your toes, Detective. So which one will it be?"

"I've got a good one! Option D, none of the above." She said with a smirk.

"You're no fun."

"_Really. _You're the one that came up with carnivorous desk lamps."

"You asked me what I wanted to talk about and I told you! Besides, I don't think it's totally out of the realm of possibility, do you? I mean if desk lamps could move do you _really _think they'd be herbivores? Naw, with that heat they'd be havin' BBQ desk-workers every meal and—"

"OK, ok, Castle. Got the point. Desk lamps would be carnivores if they could move. I feel enlightened."

"Glad I could help."

Kate rolled her eyes but couldn't suppress the laugh she felt coming.

"Oh Castle, you really are a piece of work you know that?"

"Yup. I've been told that by approximately…five hundred and forty-three people."

"You keep track, do you?"

"Uh huh, I like to know what people think of me."

Kate had a nagging suspicion he was only half kidding.

"So, _Rick_, how many people have found you "ruggedly handsome?"

"One thousand and four." Castle responded in a heartbeat.

"And this was after how much wine?"

"A bottle or two…or three… but that's not the point."

"No, no, not at all. I find alcohol actually makes _my _vision sharper. Doesn't it do that to yours?"

"Well played, Beckett. Well played."

"I've got to keep you on your toes, right Castle?"

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

His previously dazzling smile had become so blindingly brilliant that if Kate had been standing she was disturbingly sure she would have lost her balance. Maybe landed in his arms. Not so bad… _Kate. Focus. Josh Josh Josh Josh Josh. _She chanted his name to herself until she felt that she had some grip on reality.

Looking down at her hands she realized the struggle to stay away from Castle was spiraling out of control. She didn't _want_ him to have this affect on her. But he did. He made her feel euphoric, beautiful, daring; the list went on. He made her feel… everything. Every emotion she thought ever existed swirled in a kaleidoscope-like confusion when she was with him. She wished she could have something she had been lacking from the day she walked up to him three long years ago.

Clarity.

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**A/N: I hope Kate wasn't too OOC. I'm not sure if i like this chapter. PLEASE PLEASE leave a review and tell me want you think. they give me purposeeee in my liiiiifeee. :D also i really want to know if this was ok or just really bad. tell me bros. oK important question time: would you like me to do one last chapter of this "little thing" with a bit more Caskett interaction and maybe some more Musing!Beckett or would you like me to go on to the next thing already. let me know dudes and lurkers and lions, i love y'all!  
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